Start the coutdown, T-60 days

So starts the offensive:

Senior Bush administration officials plan a 60-day, 60-city campaign to turbocharge their Social Security overhaul campaign, Treasury Secretary John Snow said on Wednesday.

"My colleagues in the cabinet, sub-cabinet and I, colleagues in the White House, colleagues here at Treasury, the President, the Vice President will be traveling the country, taking the message out," Snow told reporters at a briefing.

The promotional blitz comes as some lawmakers and polls suggest the administration's plans to allow workers to divert a portion of the taxes that pay for their Social Security benefits for stock and bond investments has lost momentum and failed to ignite broad public enthusiasm.

Of course, the more they campaign, the worse public opinion has gotten. It's so bad now, that few Republican bloggers that I have seen even bother to touch the issue anymore.

Also of note from the Reuters article:

Snow said the administration would be willing to discuss a proposal to let workers have private accounts separate from -- rather than carved out of -- the payroll taxes they pay.

That would be a big change in the tactics the White House has put forth up until now.

Also of note today, Republicans on Capital Hill turned to petulant children not getting their way:

Republican Congressional leaders, frustrated that President Bush's plan to restructure Social Security is failing to win widespread support, lashed out on Wednesday at Democrats and the country's largest retiree organization, who oppose it.

(snip)

Democrats struck back at Republican criticisms saying Bush was trying to create a crisis in Social Security when the program will be able to pay full retirement benefits for decades to come.
"We're not going to be sucked into the president's plan to have us have meetings with him on something that is not an emergency," Senate Democratic leader Harry Reid of Nevada told reporters.

He said Bush should be addressing more pressing problems like health care, education and huge budget deficits.

Should make for an interesting 60 days.